ARTICLE: How US Airways Checks Its Boeing 737s

TEMPE, Ariz. (TheStreet) -- As the airline industry explores how to address the problem of metal fatigue in aging aircraft like Boeing (BA) 737 300s, analysts say that US Airways'(LCC) method of checking older aircraft is potentially a benchmark for the future.

Over the past decade, the 58 older 737s in the US Airways fleet have been subject to an inspection process that is far more rigorous than what newer 737s endure.

The frequency and rigor of US Airways inspections "should be a model" for the industry, said John Goglia, a safety consultant who is a former member of the National Transportation Safety Board and a former US Airways mechanic.

I guess they crunched the numbers and learned it's cheaper, easier and more beneficial overall to do preventative maintenance than to do the bare minimum. WN's expenses in mechanic overtime, passenger compensation (not just meal vouchers either), agent overtime (to handle all the extra reticketing) and baggage couriers (when someone is rerouted but their bag is not) due to grounding such a large portion of their fleet, even for a short time, must be a lot more than it costs US to do these extra checks, plus it lessens the company's exposure to lawsuits by preventing a maintenance-related fatality.

US did just recentl have to ground their A333's for a day or two due to fuel leaks found on one plane during maintenance/inspection; lots of displaced International passengers. UA recently grounded a large number of planes for mechanical reasons too, can't remember the specifics but will try to find them and post them here. But these are very expensive scenarios and I'm really not surprised if the motivation behind aggressive inspections is at least in part financial.

United Continental Holdings Inc. said it voluntarily grounded 96 United Airlines aircraft Tuesday to allow for maintenance checks that had not been completed.The grounding caused at least 17 flights to be canceled and an unspecified number of delays. The maintenance checks take 60 to 90 minutes.The issue could affect United's schedule into Wednesday.Airline spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said United grounded the Boeing 757 aircraft because the carrier determined that it had not completed operational checks after updating air data computers following a 2004 federal directive. She said all of the computers are fully functional.McCarthy said the airline discovered the oversight Tuesday during routine quality assurance checks. An FAA spokeswoman, Laura Brown, said United's move was voluntary.

Perhaps it's a bit cynical, but there's the persistent theory that one way WN is able to cut costs is by cutting maintenance.

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To WN's defense, Boeing has said that the design of the WN 737 that had the incident was "an attempt to improve the design and provide a longer life of the lap join," and Boeing's analysis and testing led them to believe it would permit them to delay the inspection requirements until 60,000 cycles.

Quite true, but interesting that US implemented the electrolytic testing process even though not ordered to do so whereas WN was ordered. And, of course, it's not like WN doesn't have a 'black mark' or two against it with regard to maintenance the past year or so.

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